THE EARTHQUAKE; Closed Roads Forcing Drivers to Try Trains

In Southern California, where automobiles are almost second homes, thousands of wary people this week stepped onto commuter trains and buses for the first time in their lives.

Parts of several crucial freeways were destroyed by Monday's earthquake, leaving the city with monumental traffic jams. As a result, civilized confusion reigned at bus stops and train stations as people tried to find their way to work.

This morning many commuters were struggling to reconcile themselves to the loss of freedom and privacy that came with their own set of wheels. They pondered whether trains, subways and buses would be more efficient in the long run.

And while some described it as a temporary solution until the roads were repaired, others talked almost evangelically of a new era and saw their rides as an adventure. 'It's a Comfort'

"This is a lot better than I thought it would be," said Gary Bussjaeger, 36, who was riding to work on the new regional light-rail system, Metrolink, for only the second time. "You can talk with people about the earthquake, meet your neighbors. It's a comfort."

Mr. Bussjaeger said the shift to trains might signal a change in commuting habits. Referring to his work as a service manager at an auto dealer, he remarked, "This could affect business."

Across from him, Carmen Scott, 44, the payroll director at Paramount pictures, nodded her head in agreement, but sounded a note of caution about whether people would make the switch for good.

"There's always that bond to your car," she said. "There's still a lot of attachment."

Mr. Bussjaeger added, "I miss my car stereo."

The two were traveling from Santa Clarita, about 25 miles north of downtown Los Angeles, to Glendale, another Los Angeles suburb. Both said that under normal conditions driving would have been quicker and more convenient.

Because of delays caused by the crowds and the need to inspect tracks for earthquake damage, the train arrived a half-hour late, and their trip from door-to-door took more than two hours, easily double their usual commuting time. But today, the freeway they had relied on, Interstate 5, was blocked by a collapsed interchange, and the only alternate route was backed up for miles. It will take months to repair the road, and both said that they expected to rely on the trains until then.

But once the freeway is passable again, they said the did not know what they would do. Up Nearly 50 Percent

For Metrolink, which opened in 1992 and has been trying to lure commuters away from their cars, the earthquake has been a tremendous boost to business, and its officials say it gives them a chance to change people's life styles.

The number of riders increased by nearly 50 percent today, to 15,500 from roughly 9,800 on a typical day before the quake. The number of trains has been increased, and officials are adding extra stops next week, months ahead of a planned expansion.

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The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which includes Metrolink as well as the city's bus and subway service, also announced on Wednesday that it was starting an express bus line from the West Side to downtown and was adding roughly 80 buses to other lines.

"This is an opportunity for the Metrolink system and the M.T.A. to show the people in Southern California what these agencies can do to improve their quality of life," said Bill Collier, Metrolink's director of operations.

Still, established commuting patterns die hard. When the 1989 earthquake struck the San Francisco area and closed the Bay Bridge, ferry companies opened and people enthusiastically rode them from Oakland and Berkeley across the bay to San Francisco. Still, once the bridge was repaired, people returned to the old route, and without enough business, the ferries stopped.

But this week in Los Angeles, commuters were digging in for a spell of relying on trains and buses, since highway repairs were expected to take months. And as people headed to the train stations, they encountered unprecedented crowds.

Parking lots were overflowing and lines for tickets were sometimes two hours long as baffled first-time riders trying to figure out how to buy tickets from automatic dispensers. And while Metrolink's customer representatives tried to help people find trains, some people were clearly having a hard time adjusting to the idea of schedules. New Experience for Most

"It took me 12 hours to figure out how this works," said Debra Warren, a 39-year-old Southern California native, as she waited at about 8 A.M. on the platform for her train at the Burbank station. She could not recall every taking public transportation in Los Angeles before the quake, and although her ride on Wednesday was delayed two hours because of an aftershock, she still gloated about the trip.

"I saw this long line of traffic, while I was sitting there reading the paper," she said. "I thought to myself, 'I hope they're eating their hearts out.' "

Across the tracks, Sam McLawyer, a Metrolink supervisor, was fielding questions from customers. A veteran commuter complained calmly that she had nowhere to park, and he replied, "Hold on, I'll move my car." But before he could move, someone came up to him and showed him a ticket.

"Santa Clarita?" Mr. McLawyer asked. "This isn't going to do you any good. The next train there isn't for four hours."

Another passenger, Ken Wittler, stood there somewhat dazed by the whole scene and staring at a schedule as if it was hieroglyphics. He also wanted to go to Santa Clarita, and had driven about a half-hour to the station, arriving around 7 to catch an early train and then discovering that the ticket machine would not accept his credit card. By the time he returned with cash, the train was gone.

"I don't know how I'm going to adjust to this," he said. "But there's no other way for me to get to work."

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A version of this article appears in print on January 21, 1994, on Page A00018 of the National edition with the headline: THE EARTHQUAKE; Closed Roads Forcing Drivers to Try Trains. Order Reprints|Today's Paper|Subscribe